Athena

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much expenditure from the public purse has been spent on European Security and Defence Policy military operations  (a) under the Athena mechanism and  (b) not under the Athena mechanism since January 2004, broken down by operation.

Bob Ainsworth: holding answer 10 January 2008
	The amount spent on ESDP military operations since January 2004 under the Athena mechanism is set out as shown.
	The amount spent on ESDP military operations since January 2004 not under the Athena mechanism format includes national borne costs which are held theatre wide rather than for NATO/ESDP (for example in the Balkans). Further work is therefore required to determine these costs as accurately as possible. I will write to the hon. Member as soon as this work is complete.
	
		
			  EU operation  Where  When  Under ATHENA (£ million) 
			 ALTHEA (Bosnia and Herzegovina Since July 2004 15.177 
			 EUFORDRC Democratic Republic of Congo April 2006 to November 2006 1.417 
			 EUFOR CHAD/CAR CHAD/ Central African Republic Yet to deploy 5.902 
			 Total — — 22.496 
		
	
	 Substantive answer from Bob Ainsworth to Liam Fox:
	I undertook to write in answer to your Parliamentary Question of 14 January 2007,  Official Report, column 878W, with more detail on the amount spent on ESDP military operations since January 2004 not under the Athena mechanism format.
	In addition to the figures already provided, the national borne cost for NATO and ESDP missions is £208.95 million for the period requested. As this figure represents a national pan-Balkans commitment it has not been possible to disaggregate further between the NATO-led mission in Kosovo and the missions in Bosnia and Herzegovina, at first led by NATO and after July 2004 led by the EU.
	For the EUFOR mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo mission, two staff officers were deployed, but it has not been possible to disaggregate this figure.
	For the EUFOR mission to Chad and the Central African Republic, two staff officers have deployed to the French OHQ in Paris and two staff officers will deploy with the Force Headquarters to Chad, but the figure for these costs has not yet been identified.

Health Services: Armed Forces

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2007,  Official Report, column 312W, on health services: armed forces, what funding is to be made available for care home funding for war pensioners in each financial year until 2016-17.

Derek Twigg: Under the War Pensions Scheme the Department has the discretionary power, in Article 21 of the Service Pensions Order, to meet the cost of any necessary expenses in respect of the medical, surgical or rehabilitative treatment of a member of the armed forces that arise wholly or mainly as a result of the disablement due to service before 6 April 2005 where it is not provided free of charge under other legislation of the United Kingdom. This power predates the NHS and is now little used because health care is through the normal mechanisms of the health service.
	MOD continues to fund the fees of a small number of war pensioners who are in homes that provide skilled nursing care for the condition for which they receive a war pension. Funding is provided on a case-by-case basis. Funding under the War Pensions Scheme comes from Annually Managed Expenditure, is demand lead and is not subject to forecast other than for the purposes of the War Pensions supply estimate.

Essex Police: Emergency Calls

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if she will make a statement on the performance of the Essex police emergency call system.

Tony McNulty: HMIC inspected all forces in England and Wales across a number of police business areas as part of their Baseline assessments up until 2007. Contact management was one of those business areas. In the three years to 2007, Essex police had been graded FAIR (2003-04), FAIR (2004-05) and GOOD (2005-06), indicating steady and continual improvement.
	In the year to date Essex have been performing very well in respect of their 999 emergency call-handling, answering 92.5 per cent. of call received within 10 seconds, which is 2.5 per cent. above the expected target of 90 per cent. in 10 seconds as laid down in the National Call Handling Standards.

Police: Manpower

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentage of police officers left the police service  (a) within two to five years,  (b) within five to 10 years and  (c) after over 10 years of joining, in each year since 1997, broken down by police force area.

Tony McNulty: Data are available from 2002-03 onwards, and the Home Office only started collecting this level of detail from that year.
	These figures are given in the following tables, and are on the same basis as the ones given for police officers who left the service within two years of joining—28 November 2007,  Official Report, columns 471-75W. The number of transfers between forces has been separately identified as these officers, while leaving individual police forces, have not left the police service itself.
	
		
			  Number of police officers leaving the force (with the number of transfers separately identified) and the percentage of total police officer leavers that this figure represents, from 2002 - 03 to 2006 - 07( 1) 
			   (a) Officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			   2002 - 03  2003 - 04 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 4 9 4 7 14 10 
			 Bedfordshire 4 13 14 8 16 15 
			 Cambridgeshire 4 5 5 10 13 14 
			 Cheshire 1 1 1 4 8 7 
			 Cleveland 1 1 2 3 9 11 
			 Cumbria 1 3 5 3 5 10 
			 Derbyshire 3 6 5 1 7 8 
			 Devon and Cornwall 5 7 5 1 8 6 
			 Dorset 1 6 9 3 3 4 
			 Durham 4 5 7 8 10 13 
			 Dyfed-Powys 1 1 2 1 1 3 
			 Essex 20 26 12 7 19 9 
			 Gloucestershire 8 13 16 7 9 16 
			 Greater Manchester 22 42 11 21 40 12 
			 Gwent 0 6 10 4 6 8 
			 Hampshire 10 17 8 12 20 9 
			 Hertfordshire 14 19 10 7 16 10 
			 Humberside 4 8 8 7 14 14 
			 Kent 7 12 6 16 21 9 
			 Lancashire(2) — — — 0 13 10 
			 Leicestershire(3) 10 14 11 0 4 5 
			 Lincolnshire 3 4 5 5 8 13 
			 London, City of 1 2 3 2 3 5 
			 Merseyside 2 5 3 7 16 9 
			 Metropolitan Police 143 187 11 147 205 13 
			 Norfolk 2 3 3 1 3 6 
			 Northamptonshire 2 5 9 4 12 16 
			 Northumbria 3 8 5 4 15 8 
			 North Wales 3 9 12 2 7 12 
			 North Yorkshire 1 2 3 2 4 5 
			 Nottinghamshire — 10 7 10 14 11 
			 South Wales 4 12 8 5 17 12 
			 South Yorkshire 7 14 8 5 11 7 
			 Staffordshire 3 8 6 3 6 6 
			 Suffolk 8 13 15 — 2 3 
			 Surrey 65 72 29 35 46 31 
			 Sussex 11 15 6 13 21 7 
			 Thames Valley 52 64 17 35 45 14 
			 Warwickshire 4 10 17 4 8 14 
			 West Mercia 3 6 5 0 5 4 
			 West Midlands 51 65 12 46 69 15 
			 West Yorkshire 1 10 4 6 15 6 
			 Wiltshire 0 6 7 5 7 11 
			 Total(4) 483 730 10 471 778 11 
		
	
	
		
			   2004 - 05  2005 - 06 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 8 16 9 9 24 13 
			 Bedfordshire 4 8 8 6 13 15 
			 Cambridgeshire 10 20 19 13 21 19 
			 Cheshire 3 7 6 3 14 8 
			 Cleveland 6 13 16 8 19 18 
			 Cumbria 1 2 4 2 4 6 
			 Derbyshire 2 11 10 3 11 8 
			 Devon and Cornwall 6 13 7 5 12 6 
			 Dorset 0 4 5 1 9 9 
			 Durham 4 10 12 4 7 7 
			 Dyfed-Powys 1 3 5 2 6 8 
			 Essex 13 22 10 14 26 10 
			 Gloucestershire 1 3 5 5 11 12 
			 Greater Manchester 12 47 13 34 73 15 
			 Gwent 3 7 10 3 12 15 
			 Hampshire 23 31 12 10 21 7 
			 Hertfordshire 14 25 16 11 25 15 
			 Humberside 5 21 19 10 16 10 
			 Kent 10 23 11 11 30 11 
			 Lancashire(2) 6 13 8 3 10 5 
			 Leicestershire(3) — — — 5 11 7 
			 Lincolnshire 1 1 1 4 10 10 
			 London, City of 8 9 15 9 11 14 
			 Merseyside 9 20 9 2 10 4 
			 Metropolitan Police 86 142 10 112 214 13 
			 Norfolk 1 2 3 1 3 3 
			 Northamptonshire 6 14 15 5 6 7 
			 Northumbria 6 8 5 2 14 7 
			 North Wales 0 8 15 0 3 3 
			 North Yorkshire 7 16 18 4 8 8 
			 Nottinghamshire 15 21 14 10 16 10 
			 South Wales 1 6 5 2 14 8 
			 South Yorkshire 6 11 6 3 14 6 
			 Staffordshire 1 7 6 3 6 5 
			 Suffolk 8 11 15 4 7 8 
			 Surrey 32 42 27 15 26 17 
			 Sussex 3 5 2 9 24 11 
			 Thames Valley 38 52 17 36 62 19 
			 Warwickshire 1 3 5 1 5 7 
			 West Mercia 7 12 10 1 9 6 
			 West Midlands 26 54 12 29 66 14 
			 West Yorkshire 11 25 9 11 22 6 
			 Wiltshire 2 8 10 0 6 8 
			 Total(4) 401 763 11 417 910 11 
		
	
	
		
			   2006 - 07 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 16 28 17 
			 Bedfordshire 2 12 21 
			 Cambridgeshire 6 10 11 
			 Cheshire 4 11 10 
			 Cleveland 3 8 10 
			 Cumbria 1 9 18 
			 Derbyshire 3 10 7 
			 Devon and Cornwall 3 8 6 
			 Dorset 4 7 6 
			 Durham 1 7 11 
			 Dyfed-Powys 6 6 13 
			 Essex 0 21 7 
			 Gloucestershire 3 9 12 
			 Greater Manchester 32 76 15 
			 Gwent 8 12 18 
			 Hampshire 14 19 9 
			 Hertfordshire 24 45 25 
			 Humberside 6 17 14 
			 Kent 14 27 12 
			 Lancashire(2) 4 20 11 
			 Leicestershire(3) 7 17 12 
			 Lincolnshire 3 10 12 
			 London, City of 6 8 12 
			 Merseyside 4 19 7 
			 Metropolitan Police 86 226 13 
			 Norfolk 2 7 7 
			 Northamptonshire 8 13 13 
			 Northumbria 3 15 8 
			 North Wales 6 13 15 
			 North Yorkshire 6 15 15 
			 Nottinghamshire 7 15 10 
			 South Wales 0 8 4 
			 South Yorkshire 8 18 9 
			 Staffordshire 6 16 14 
			 Suffolk 4 9 17 
			 Surrey 19 32 17 
			 Sussex 12 32 15 
			 Thames Valley 46 77 26 
			 Warwickshire 7 11 15 
			 West Mercia 4 16 11 
			 West Midlands 26 65 13 
			 West Yorkshire 16 38 11 
			 Wiltshire 1 6 10 
			 Total(4) 430 1,011 13 
		
	
	
		
			   (b) Officers leaving with five to less than ten years' service 
			   2002 - 03  2003 - 04 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 12 25 12 5 14 10 
			 Bedfordshire 6 6 7 8 10 10 
			 Cambridgeshire 12 23 21 8 12 13 
			 Cheshire 2 13 12 4 16 15 
			 Cleveland 1 5 8 2 7 9 
			 Cumbria 3 7 12 0 3 6 
			 Derbyshire 2 7 6 1 4 5 
			 Devon and Cornwall 4 13 8 6 11 9 
			 Dorset 3 3 4 2 8 11 
			 Durham 4 10 14 7 10 13 
			 Dyfed-Powys 2 10 18 0 1 3 
			 Essex 23 35 16 16 22 11 
			 Gloucestershire 1 2 2 3 5 9 
			 Greater Manchester 20 44 12 16 40 12 
			 Gwent 0 9 15 0 4 5 
			 Hampshire 14 22 10 19 32 14 
			 Hertfordshire 21 25 13 8 11 7 
			 Humberside 2 10 10 4 6 6 
			 Kent 18 27 13 12 19 8 
			 Lancashire(2) — — — 0 9 7 
			 Leicestershire(3) 14 28 22 0 10 12 
			 Lincolnshire 2 5 7 2 5 8 
			 London, City of 5 10 17 8 13 23 
			 Merseyside 2 11 6 8 18 10 
			 Metropolitan Police 93 179 10 88 144 9 
			 Norfolk 5 8 9 2 4 8 
			 Northamptonshire 6 7 13 7 14 19 
			 Northumbria 6 17 10 4 20 11 
			 North Wales 2 2 3 1 8 14 
			 North Yorkshire 1 2 3 6 10 14 
			 Nottinghamshire — 17 12 6 7 6 
			 South Wales 3 8 5 0 6 4 
			 South Yorkshire 3 14 8 3 12 7 
			 Staffordshire 5 17 13 4 10 10 
			 Suffolk 1 3 4 1 7 9 
			 Surrey 26 30 12 6 12 8 
			 Sussex 17 28 11 17 30 10 
			 Thames Valley 28 40 11 31 42 13 
			 Warwickshire 2 2 3 1 1 2 
			 West Mercia 5 8 7 10 15 12 
			 West Midlands 57 82 16 43 93 21 
			 West Yorkshire 6 18 7 7 25 10 
			 Wiltshire 0 8 10 0 3 5 
			 Total(4) 425 812 11 376 734 11 
		
	
	
		
			   2004 - 05  2005 - 06 
			   Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 5 15 9 6 14 8 
			 Bedfordshire 4 5 5 3 3 3 
			 Cambridgeshire 3 9 9 4 12 11 
			 Cheshire 4 6 6 7 14 8 
			 Cleveland 0 8 10 3 8 8 
			 Cumbria 3 4 9 5 7 10 
			 Derbyshire 5 9 8 1 3 2 
			 Devon and Cornwall 7 11 6 5 13 7 
			 Dorset 4 11 14 2 6 6 
			 Durham 2 5 6 7 9 9 
			 Dyfed-Powys 1 7 11 0 6 8 
			 Essex 16 23 10 21 22 8 
			 Gloucestershire 2 3 5 3 6 6 
			 Greater Manchester 13 32 9 19 45 9 
			 Gwent 5 11 15 3 9 11 
			 Hampshire 17 27 10 9 19 6 
			 Hertfordshire 9 15 10 17 23 13 
			 Humberside 1 3 3 6 19 12 
			 Kent 10 20 9 11 21 8 
			 Lancashire(2) 2 8 5 4 6 3 
			 Leicestershire(3) — — — 11 23 14 
			 Lincolnshire 3 8 10 4 7 7 
			 London, City of 5 9 15 3 5 6 
			 Merseyside 4 7 3 6 16 6 
			 Metropolitan Police 62 136 10 77 140 9 
			 Norfolk 3 4 5 2 7 8 
			 Northamptonshire 4 10 11 4 8 9 
			 Northumbria 5 11 7 7 15 7 
			 North Wales 0 0 0 0 10 10 
			 North Yorkshire 1 4 4 7 15 15 
			 Nottinghamshire 2 8 6 8 12 8 
			 South Wales 1 5 4 7 13 7 
			 South Yorkshire 3 13 7 11 19 8 
			 Staffordshire 5 10 8 2 3 3 
			 Suffolk 2 10 14 5 7 8 
			 Surrey 12 16 10 16 24 16 
			 Sussex 19 32 12 6 13 6 
			 Thames Valley 18 25 8 16 36 11 
			 Warwickshire 1 3 5 1 5 7 
			 West Mercia 4 10 9 3 9 6 
			 West Midlands 24 49 11 30 57 12 
			 West Yorkshire 0 19 7 7 14 4 
			 Wiltshire 2 8 10 0 6 8 
			 Total(4) 291 621 9 354 700 8 
		
	
	
		
			   2006 - 07 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 7 13 8 
			 Bedfordshire 5 10 18 
			 Cambridgeshire 1 5 6 
			 Cheshire 5 9 8 
			 Cleveland 1 7 9 
			 Cumbria 1 3 6 
			 Derbyshire 3 15 11 
			 Devon and Cornwall 6 13 10 
			 Dorset 4 8 7 
			 Durham 5 8 13 
			 Dyfed-Powys 2 2 4 
			 Essex 0 11 4 
			 Gloucestershire 1 6 8 
			 Greater Manchester 25 69 14 
			 Gwent 2 6 9 
			 Hampshire 8 17 8 
			 Hertfordshire 22 30 17 
			 Humberside 3 7 6 
			 Kent 12 26 11 
			 Lancashire(2) 3 7 4 
			 Leicestershire(3) 7 15 11 
			 Lincolnshire 4 6 7 
			 London, City of 8 10 15 
			 Merseyside 3 11 4 
			 Metropolitan Police 90 167 10 
			 Norfolk 1 4 4 
			 Northamptonshire 6 8 8 
			 Northumbria 4 16 9 
			 North Wales 6 11 13 
			 North Yorkshire 2 10 10 
			 Nottinghamshire 11 20 14 
			 South Wales 1 16 8 
			 South Yorkshire 19 26 13 
			 Staffordshire 6 9 8 
			 Suffolk 4 6 11 
			 Surrey 22 37 19 
			 Sussex 12 21 10 
			 Thames Valley 25 38 13 
			 Warwickshire 4 8 11 
			 West Mercia 9 18 12 
			 West Midlands 36 63 13 
			 West Yorkshire 2 12 3 
			 Wiltshire 1 10 16 
			 Total(4) 389 792 10 
		
	
	
		
			   (c) Officers leaving with 10 years' or more service 
			   2002 - 03  2003 - 04 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 13 133 65 7 83 58 
			 Bedfordshire 17 56 61 20 56 54 
			 Cambridgeshire 13 62 58 12 60 63 
			 Cheshire 3 93 82 8 73 67 
			 Cleveland 2 53 87 8 57 70 
			 Cumbria 4 44 75 0 37 77 
			 Derbyshire 2 90 82 1 62 72 
			 Devon and Cornwall 5 114 74 6 99 77 
			 Dorset 6 46 68 4 49 65 
			 Durham 2 53 72 3 47 60 
			 Dyfed-Powys 2 38 69 7 33 83 
			 Essex 40 131 61 49 147 71 
			 Gloucestershire 3 55 66 4 33 58 
			 Greater Manchester 14 233 62 15 186 56 
			 Gwent 2 44 72 6 60 82 
			 Hampshire 16 157 70 14 132 57 
			 Hertfordshire 47 113 59 33 88 56 
			 Humberside 2 69 66 3 55 57 
			 Kent 21 133 62 36 141 62 
			 Lancashire(2) — — — 0 86 68 
			 Leicestershire(3) 15 76 60 12 56 65 
			 Lincolnshire 1 49 67 2 41 67 
			 London, City of 9 36 61 8 35 63 
			 Merseyside 2 170 87 4 128 73 
			 Metropolitan Police 185 968 56 156 834 53 
			 Norfolk 2 69 75 2 38 75 
			 Northamptonshire 4 36 64 5 40 55 
			 Northumbria 6 119 73 13 127 70 
			 North Wales — 57 74 3 35 61 
			 North Yorkshire 5 46 79 4 53 72 
			 Nottinghamshire — 102 74 6 89 72 
			 South Wales 2 108 71 1 113 77 
			 South Yorkshire 5 120 70 2 117 72 
			 Staffordshire 9 94 72 3 75 73 
			 Suffolk 9 57 67 6 46 61 
			 Surrey 34 92 37 7 50 34 
			 Sussex 42 154 63 37 152 52 
			 Thames Valley 60 213 58 63 194 61 
			 Warwickshire 4 34 59 3 40 71 
			 West Mercia 6 89 77 11 81 66 
			 West Midlands 73 292 55 45 281 62 
			 West Yorkshire 13 199 77 12 177 71 
			 Wiltshire 0 58 71 7 42 64 
			 Total(4) 685 4,879 64 636 4,286 61 
		
	
	
		
			   2004 - 05  2005 - 06 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 8 111 65 8 131 71 
			 Bedfordshire 15 55 56 9 57 64 
			 Cambridgeshire 11 63 61 8 65 59 
			 Cheshire 7 79 72 32 142 80 
			 Cleveland 1 46 57 10 71 67 
			 Cumbria 1 31 69 15 56 78 
			 Derbyshire 4 83 76 16 121 87 
			 Devon and Cornwall 5 136 76 28 151 76 
			 Dorset 1 51 65 4 74 71 
			 Durham 1 49 60 17 71 69 
			 Dyfed-Powys 0 41 67 11 59 79 
			 Essex 21 144 65 53 172 66 
			 Gloucestershire 5 41 71 13 73 78 
			 Greater Manchester 16 224 63 16 330 67 
			 Gwent 1 51 70 1 46 58 
			 Hampshire 18 171 64 41 222 76 
			 Hertfordshire 20 79 50 23 92 54 
			 Humberside 5 77 68 17 101 65 
			 Kent 22 146 68 56 197 73 
			 Lancashire(2) 6 125 75 50 181 86 
			 Leicestershire(3) — — — 16 106 67 
			 Lincolnshire 0 57 71 8 65 68 
			 London, City of 9 35 59 17 60 76 
			 Merseyside 13 179 79 4 239 84 
			 Metropolitan Police 111 886 64 288 1,155 72 
			 Norfolk 5 67 84 11 70 77 
			 Northamptonshire 8 62 68 11 67 74 
			 Northumbria 8 122 76 38 160 79 
			 North Wales 0 36 67 10 80 81 
			 North Yorkshire 1 56 63 4 76 75 
			 Nottinghamshire 4 101 70 25 128 80 
			 South Wales 2 108 83 25 143 78 
			 South Yorkshire 11 121 69 43 185 77 
			 Staffordshire 6 75 60 10 92 81 
			 Suffolk 4 37 50 12 66 73 
			 Surrey 18 70 44 11 78 52 
			 Sussex 21 138 53 23 135 61 
			 Thames Valley 27 174 56 14 190 58 
			 Warwickshire 9 55 86 16 58 79 
			 West Mercia 12 81 70 28 127 82 
			 West Midlands 29 266 60 38 301 62 
			 West Yorkshire 13 184 69 50 267 73 
			 Wiltshire 4 52 66 7 49 67 
			 Total(4) 477 4,640 65 1,071 6,022 71 
		
	
	
		
			   2006 - 07 
			  Police force area  Number of transfers (included as part of overall officers leaving the service)  Number of police officers leaving the force with two to less than five years' service  Percentage of police officers leaving with two to less than five years' service 
			 Avon and Somerset 9 110 68 
			 Bedfordshire 8 22 39 
			 Cambridgeshire 11 63 70 
			 Cheshire 5 78 68 
			 Cleveland 7 46 60 
			 Cumbria 0 31 62 
			 Derbyshire 2 106 76 
			 Devon and Cornwall 9 91 69 
			 Dorset 1 81 73 
			 Durham 3 40 63 
			 Dyfed-Powys 2 37 77 
			 Essex 0 210 74 
			 Gloucestershire 1 57 75 
			 Greater Manchester 30 328 67 
			 Gwent 2 39 60 
			 Hampshire 13 154 73 
			 Hertfordshire 22 76 42 
			 Humberside 5 81 67 
			 Kent 14 162 71 
			 Lancashire(2) 10 134 76 
			 Leicestershire(3) 16 99 71 
			 Lincolnshire 6 58 72 
			 London, City of 10 47 70 
			 Merseyside 3 199 76 
			 Metropolitan Police 95 1,226 72 
			 Norfolk 9 77 77 
			 Northamptonshire 19 70 67 
			 Northumbria 3 141 76 
			 North Wales 2 55 63 
			 North Yorkshire 3 61 59 
			 Nottinghamshire 6 106 72 
			 South Wales 1 155 82 
			 South Yorkshire 9 127 65 
			 Staffordshire 8 80 68 
			 Suffolk 3 36 67 
			 Surrey 23 70 37 
			 Sussex 20 128 59 
			 Thames Valley 16 150 51 
			 Warwickshire 1 49 65 
			 West Mercia 13 99 68 
			 West Midlands 23 325 65 
			 West Yorkshire 15 253 73 
			 Wiltshire 2 40 65 
			 Total(4) 434 5,364 68 
			 (1) Leaving figures include police officers leaving the force within the designated range of years of joining or re-joining the service, due to dismissals (including requirement to resign), voluntary resignations, medical retirements, ordinary retirements, all transfers and all deaths. (2) Data for Lancashire was not available in 2002-03. (3) Data for Leicestershire was not available in 2004-05. (4) In order to compare data between 2002-03 and 2006-07 Lancashire and Leicestershire have been excluded from the total.

Reoffenders

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many persistent and prolific offenders have been identified in each police force area in each of the last three years for which figures are available.

Tony McNulty: Data from the performance management arrangements for the prolific and other priority offender programme (JTrack) provides the number of such offenders identified through partnership arrangements in each police force area. The data is provided in the following table. The data covers the two calendar years 2005 and 2006. Figures for the calendar year 2007 are not yet available for publication.
	
		
			  Sum of prolific and priority offenders 
			  Police force area  At December 2005  At December 2006 
			 Avon and Somerset 239 245 
			 Bedfordshire 123 139 
			 Cambridgeshire 93 110 
			 Cheshire 182 180 
			 City of London 5 12 
			 Cleveland 127 145 
			 Cumbria 66 70 
			 Derbyshire 368 373 
			 Devon and Cornwall 395 365 
			 Dorset 208 208 
			 Durham 61 58 
			 Dyfed Powys 93 82 
			 Essex 258 235 
			 Gloucestershire 100 106 
			 Greater Manchester 739 846 
			 Gwent 79 85 
			 Hampshire 209 274 
			 Hertfordshire 247 149 
			 Humberside 181 214 
			 Kent 334 261 
			 Lancashire 424 367 
			 Leicestershire 330 353 
			 Lincolnshire 155 232 
			 Merseyside 410 445 
			 Metropolitan police 1,080 1,185 
			 Norfolk 131 110 
			 North Wales 159 120 
			 North Yorkshire 56 89 
			 Northamptonshire 195 229 
			 Northumbria 208 236 
			 Nottinghamshire 505 558 
			 South Wales 190 204 
			 South Yorkshire 249 252 
			 Staffordshire 157 252 
			 Suffolk 173 173 
			 Surrey 151 191 
			 Sussex 320 320 
			 Thames Valley 326 351 
			 Warwickshire 74 88 
			 West Mercia 155 120 
			 West Midlands 714 768 
			 West Yorkshire 284 243 
			 Wiltshire 81 73 
			 All forces 10,634 11,116 
			  Notes: 1. Figures represent those PPOs in each area who were known to be members of schemes in December of the year concerned, based on JTrack data. 2. If a PPO belonged to more than one scheme during the December of the year concerned then they would be counted more than once.

Incapacity Benefit

Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when his Department will pay the award of current incapacity benefit and arrears from 3 April due to Mr. Hudspith of Christchurch following the decision of the Appeal Tribunal (Ref. 185/07/00866) on 14 November 2007; and what the reasons are for the time taken to make the payment.

Anne McGuire: holding answer 13 December 2007
	The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. Details of benefit claims are confidential so she will write to you directly on the matter in question.
	 Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 25 January 2008:
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking when the award of incapacity benefit arrears due to Mr Hudspith of Christchurch following the decision of the Appeal Tribunal (Ref. 85/07/00866) on 14 November and what the reasons are for the time taken to make the payment. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	Details of benefit claims are confidential and I will write to you directly on the matter in question.

Unemployment Benefits: Peterborough

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children in Peterborough constituency were living in a household in receipt of at least one out-of-work benefit in each year since 1997.

James Plaskitt: Information is not available prior to 2004. The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Children under 16 years of age living in households in receipt of out-of-work benefits in the Peterborough parliamentary constituency; as at April each year 
			   Number 
			 2004 5,910 
			 2005 5,640 
			 2006 5,415 
			 2007 5,470 
			  Notes: 1. All figures supplied have been rounded to the nearest 10. 2. All data represent a snapshot in time of claimants on the computer system, and will therefore exclude a very small number of cases that are held clerically. 3. Data represents children dependent on a parent or guardian who is claiming one or more of incapacity benefit, severe disablement allowance, jobseeker's allowance, income support or pension credit. 4. Due to the introduction of child tax credits in April 2003, information on child dependents are not reliably completed on the benefit computer system, therefore children's data has been merged onto IS/JSA/IB/SDA/PC claims from child benefit records with permission from HMRC.  Source: DWP Information Directorate

Departmental Correspondence

Ben Wallace: To ask the Prime Minister when he will reply to the letter from the President of the European Parliament of 5 December 2007, on the report by the European Parliament's Committee of Inquiry in the crisis of the Equitable Life Assurance Society.

Gordon Brown: My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer (Alistair Darling) has replied to the letter.

Driving Under Influence: Prosecutions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prosecutions for drink driving offences were pursued against  (a) males and  (b) females in each criminal justice area in each of the last 10 years; and how many resulted in conviction.

Maria Eagle: Available information held on prosecutions and resultant convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol or taking drugs from 1996 to 2005 (latest available) are provided in the following tables. 2006 data will be available later this year.
	The data provided covers both drink and drugs offences combined, as they cannot reliably be distinguished separately.
	
		
			  Table A: Proceedings at magistrates courts for offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drug( 1, 2)  by gender and police force area, England and Wales, 1996 to 2005 
			  Number of offences 
			   1996  1997  1998  1999  2000 
			  Police force area  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,574 225 2,836 278 2,574 258 2,690 281 2,427 292 
			 Bedfordshire 1,102 94 1,235 88 1,064 103 879 82 802 82 
			 Cambridgeshire 951 90 1,078 98 1,038 107 915 107 794 88 
			 Cheshire 1,984 244 1,945 220 1,864 230 1,773 229 1,681 218 
			 Cleveland 952 77 943 86 864 83 832 80 779 79 
			 Cumbria 935 84 915 101 845 82 825 100 779 95 
			 Derbyshire 1,645 152 1,684 169 1,558 137 1,481 132 1,441 158 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2,179 227 2,375 262 2,277 254 2,248 259 2,135 286 
			 Dorset 1,214 141 1,223 132 1,172 138 1,091 132 1,083 161 
			 Durham 1,039 100 1,067 73 1,014 120 1,121 130 1,108 110 
			 Essex 2,608 260 2,760 261 2,535 241 2,566 269 2,468 234 
			 Gloucestershire 958 110 1,070 100 954 125 865 106 790 101 
			 Greater Manchester 5,153 415 4,830 405 4,652 465 4,787 467 4,707 479 
			 Hampshire 3,520 353 3,683 416 3,530 390 3,659 403 3,398 414 
			 Hertfordshire 1,454 144 1,693 151 1,665 169 1,678 149 1,500 191 
			 Humberside 1,363 120 1,301 110 1,355 118 1,306 104 1,314 154 
			 Kent 2,638 177 2,364 170 2,624 229 2,606 245 2,559 248 
			 Lancashire 3,178 330 3,334 350 2,831 373 2,893 397 2,550 329 
			 Leicestershire 1,551 112 1,662 120 1,499 116 1,652 126 1,511 140 
			 Lincolnshire 838 71 1,102 104 973 101 930 101 834 77 
			 London, City of 451 53 413 50 303 35 231 28 179 14 
			 Merseyside 2,942 240 2,864 251 2,493 267 2,172 197 2,301 214 
			 Metropolitan Police 16,588 1,453 17,428 1,561 15,026 1,409 13,391 1,329 12,923 1,243 
			 Norfolk 980 95 1,078 96 1,082 115 959 111 913 101 
			 Northamptonshire 984 72 1,155 93 1,117 113 1,110 118 813 85 
			 Northumbria 2,625 166 2,757 216 2,526 260 2,533 260 2,691 267 
			 North Yorkshire 1,335 123 1,316 165 1,194 125 1,091 138 1,026 134 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,986 162 2,081 189 1,856 157 1,850 176 1,734 181 
			 South Yorkshire 2,209 151 2,403 178 1,996 192 1,911 165 2,125 197 
			 Staffordshire 1,939 151 2,092 210 1,944 219 1,709 176 1,825 185 
			 Suffolk 1,054 117 1,037 119 1,021 125 1,044 143 891 111 
			 Surrey 1,358 151 1,367 145 1,286 169 1,350 188 1,516 213 
			 Sussex 2,207 251 2,366 292 2,117 227 2,170 270 2,091 236 
			 Thames Valley 4,144 357 4,172 394 3,955 399 3,818 374 3,489 432 
			 Warwickshire 917 82 815 92 767 88 832 95 777 78 
			 West Mercia 1,947 147 1,970 125 1,809 137 1,707 160 1,587 154 
			 West Midlands 6,271 365 6,761 427 5,938 410 5,129 341 4,766 446 
			 West Yorkshire 4,336 303 4,089 305 3,759 341 3,708 310 3,454 344 
			 Wiltshire 971 98 1,004 114 1,094 90 954 113 876 121 
			 England 93,080 8,063 96,268 8,716 88,171 8,717 84,466 8,591 80,637 8,692 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 980 115 1,046 117 985 117 936 111 890 95 
			 Gwent 1,016 86 1,146 122 1,211 125 1,119 107 1,209 132 
			 North Wales 1,336 152 1,347 149 1,258 152 1,184 163 1,279 151 
			 South Wales 2,867 231 2,972 267 3,014 295 2,543 280 2,763 312 
			 Wales 6,199 584 6,511 655 6,468 689 5,782 661 6,141 690 
			
			 England and Wales 99,279 8,647 102,779 9,371 94,639 9,406 90,248 9,252 86,778 9,382 
		
	
	
		
			  Number of offences 
			   2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  Police force area  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,147 256 2,332 293 2,646 333 2,567 384 2,486 387 
			 Bedfordshire 925 88 959 110 1,068 129 1,019 101 1,069 101 
			 Cambridgeshire 800 80 827 100 905 114 1,029 130 1,154 135 
			 Cheshire 1,560 193 2,114 318 1,862 304 2,234 340 1,637 266 
			 Cleveland 890 83 916 96 1,021 115 1,064 119 915 122 
			 Cumbria 720 90 734 98 798 117 865 97 778 145 
			 Derbyshire 1,470 142 1,451 163 1,589 189 1,824 218 1,552 212 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2,317 277 2,389 286 2,574 380 2,429 363 2,295 344 
			 Dorset 1,130 154 1,162 185 1,217 167 1,197 169 1,125 174 
			 Durham 1,054 127 1,101 146 1,150 128 1,188 150 1,070 179 
			 Essex 2,435 282 2,506 294 2,548 299 2,734 376 2,444 381 
			 Gloucestershire 842 108 912 113 866 131 856 139 809 128 
			 Greater Manchester 4,732 503 4,607 512 4,615 578 4,636 559 4,426 590 
			 Hampshire 3,436 384 3,766 474 3,590 451 3,642 479 3,202 497 
			 Hertfordshire 1,621 205 1,826 252 1,852 280 1,834 259 1,780 271 
			 Humberside 1,213 142 1,418 138 1,481 130 1,596 156 1,545 162 
			 Kent 2,571 290 2,686 338 2,802 295 2,928 323 2,798 349 
			 Lancashire 2,256 314 2,545 383 2,668 346 2,634 385 2,623 372 
			 Leicestershire 1,591 139 1,648 169 1,683 187 1,681 187 1,592 185 
			 Lincolnshire 901 90 841 76 1,110 123 1,133 165 1,132 162 
			 London, City of 162 20 229 31 226 22 186 18 196 15 
			 Merseyside 2,299 214 2,287 264 2,748 329 2,874 357 2,932 363 
			 Metropolitan Police 12,549 1,196 14,103 1,390 13,911 1,365 14,089 1,518 13,631 1,410 
			 Norfolk 1,158 135 1,180 175 1,291 143 1,205 169 1,210 169 
			 Northamptonshire 429 35 226 27 793 89 897 103 851 129 
			 Northumbria 2,590 260 2,598 323 2,759 357 2,635 386 2,519 336 
			 North Yorkshire 1,014 144 1,068 139 1,153 172 1,073 152 1,172 180 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,609 177 1,489 127 1,663 187 1,623 205 1,602 199 
			 South Yorkshire 2,039 192 1,954 211 2,133 264 2,227 247 2,203 227 
			 Staffordshire 1,506 167 1,639 231 1,682 217 1,690 251 1,662 257 
			 Suffolk 935 114 1,102 135 1,204 174 1,325 172 1,069 141 
			 Surrey 1,774 281 1,618 232 1,405 210 1,371 200 1,375 242 
			 Sussex 2,352 283 2,268 266 2,357 290 2,182 355 2,195 325 
			 Thames Valley 3,305 376 4,291 512 3,831 481 3,455 451 3,357 450 
			 Warwickshire 844 111 821 94 880 106 814 88 803 114 
			 West Mercia 1,691 183 1,655 223 1,758 213 1,627 186 1,881 156 
			 West Midlands 5,173 431 5,410 448 5,517 476 5,731 597 5,674 575 
			 West Yorkshire 3,419 320 3,772 353 3,813 357 3,900 371 3,876 383 
			 Wiltshire 1,001 126 971 129 958 147 998 131 977 137 
			 England 80,460 8,712 85,421 9,854 88,127 10,395 88,992 11,056 85,617 10,970 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 856 117 937 132 994 138 949 152 902 143 
			 Gwent 1,142 155 1,059 116 1,174 147 1,149 162 1,057 199 
			 North Wales 1,230 136 1,249 166 1,303 168 1,301 170 1,273 186 
			 South Wales 2,847 328 2,748 350 2,838 388 2,788 372 2,743 392 
			 Wales 6,075 736 5,993 764 6,309 841 6,187 856 5,975 920 
			
			 England and Wales 86,535 9,448 91,414 10,618 94,436 11,236 95,179 11,912 91,592 11,890 
		
	
	
		
			  Table B: Findings of guilt at all courts for offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs( 1, 2)  by gender and police force area, England and Wales, 1996 to 2005 
			  Number of offences 
			   1996  1997  1998  1999  2000 
			  Police force area  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female 
			 Avon and Somerset 2,309 203 2,557 255 2,332 234 2,476 252 2,197 265 
			 Bedfordshire 1,011 82 1,063 83 969 91 798 71 722 75 
			 Cambridgeshire 867 84 1,005 88 962 98 844 97 713 80 
			 Cheshire 1,807 227 1,762 207 1,694 209 1,612 215 1,460 192 
			 Cleveland 830 72 847 79 790 80 734 77 706 71 
			 Cumbria 854 73 838 92 779 77 772 99 717 89 
			 Derbyshire 1,460 135 1,472 141 1,420 127 1,346 117 1,272 145 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,943 201 2,113 229 2,036 229 2,044 233 1,941 258 
			 Dorset 1,064 126 1,097 117 1,056 130 1,002 118 967 148 
			 Durham 943 93 976 68 924 111 1,012 125 1,020 104 
			 Essex 2,323 232 2,505 231 2,223 215 2,289 239 2,244 218 
			 Gloucestershire 876 103 973 95 873 112 792 97 710 94 
			 Greater Manchester 4,711 374 4,433 373 4,293 422 4,412 438 4,358 443 
			 Hampshire 3,230 326 3,390 384 3,237 360 3,355 370 3,085 387 
			 Hertfordshire 1,294 127 1,529 141 1,517 154 1,534 145 1,374 178 
			 Humberside 1,241 112 1,173 101 1,248 110 1,227 96 1,220 151 
			 Kent 2,409 167 2,168 154 2,411 216 2,408 225 2,360 232 
			 Lancashire 2,896 315 3,071 318 2,604 341 2,641 369 2,288 296 
			 Leicestershire 1,380 98 1,536 112 1,376 109 1,507 117 1,404 127 
			 Lincolnshire 771 68 991 97 886 93 852 89 746 70 
			 London, City of 413 51 388 48 269 32 213 23 151 11 
			 Merseyside 2,537 208 2,492 229 2,214 237 1,957 180 1,945 183 
			 Metropolitan Police 13,784 1,231 14,811 1,344 12,663 1,225 11,281 1,133 10,754 1,046 
			 Norfolk 926 87 1,026 90 1,014 104 907 103 840 95 
			 Northamptonshire 861 66 1,023 84 963 99 955 103 716 66 
			 Northumbria 2,265 149 2,434 191 2,222 235 2,231 232 2,372 249 
			 North Yorkshire 1,203 108 1,216 149 1,094 111 996 128 943 130 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,786 145 1,869 162 1,658 146 1,637 165 1,553 169 
			 South Yorkshire 1,988 141 2,142 154 1,820 182 1,774 153 1,942 180 
			 Staffordshire 1,722 132 1,857 179 1,763 192 1,553 158 1,731 137 
			 Suffolk 960 106 939 111 931 111 961 128 805 97 
			 Surrey 1,239 137 1,245 135 1,170 158 1,240 177 1,341 198 
			 Sussex 1,975 225 2,109 264 1,910 203 1,978 246 1,886 226 
			 Thames Valley 3,620 322 3,720 352 3,524 371 3,379 346 3,108 388 
			 Warwickshire 833 74 751 85 704 80 765 91 712 74 
			 West Mercia 1,794 137 1,834 115 1,668 126 1,598 149 1,484 147 
			 West Midlands 5,564 314 5,972 382 5,211 371 4,468 307 4,167 392 
			 West Yorkshire 3,834 268 3,663 290 3,365 304 3,321 276 3,069 306 
			 Wiltshire 917 94 934 107 1,022 86 897 112 816 114 
			 England 82,440 7,213 85,924 7,836 78,815 7,891 75,768 7,799 71,839 7,831 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 890 103 925 104 886 109 842 102 777 81 
			 Gwent 889 77 1,053 113 1,088 115 979 100 1,093 118 
			 North Wales 1,225 138 1,214 140 1,164 142 1,096 152 1,191 142 
			 South Wales 2,512 219 2,661 232 2,651 252 2,270 256 2,472 285 
			 Wales 5,516 537 5,853 589 5,789 618 5,187 610 5,533 626 
			
			 England and Wales 87,956 7,750 91,777 8,425 84,604 8,509 80,955 8,409 77,372 8,457 
		
	
	—continued
	
		
			  Number of offences 
			   2001  2002  2003  2004  2005 
			  Police force area  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female  Male  Female 
			 Avon and Somerset 1,964 234 2,135 266 2,366 300 2,344 348 2,243 352 
			 Bedfordshire 837 77 851 104 952 120 932 96 957 93 
			 Cambridgeshire 738 76 761 90 829 104 962 121 1,089 125 
			 Cheshire 1,359 170 1,729 264 1,634 271 1,833 295 1,464 245 
			 Cleveland 814 73 831 90 876 105 960 111 844 115 
			 Cumbria 673 88 676 92 735 108 813 94 721 132 
			 Derbyshire 1,290 121 1,318 147 1,449 168 1,672 202 1,451 194 
			 Devon and Cornwall 2,119 250 2,180 261 2,313 354 2,242 318 2,127 319 
			 Dorset 1,020 131 1,028 171 1,110 154 1,087 152 1,048 159 
			 Durham 982 115 1,002 134 1,049 121 1,134 143 1,002 166 
			 Essex 2,199 257 2,253 269 2,352 270 2,505 348 2,211 338 
			 Gloucestershire 764 101 826 100 772 118 782 131 720 114 
			 Greater Manchester 4,257 458 4,245 475 4,206 537 4,284 527 4,095 558 
			 Hampshire 3,105 359 3,422 424 3,249 414 3,302 441 2,910 462 
			 Hertfordshire 1,475 191 1,661 233 1,657 246 1,634 247 1,589 247 
			 Humberside 1,127 132 1,270 125 1,327 118 1,476 147 1,448 144 
			 Kent 2,315 260 2,433 311 2,535 276 2,710 300 2,593 314 
			 Lancashire 2,020 284 2,258 341 2,336 316 2,360 346 2,382 341 
			 Leicestershire 1,416 130 1,504 155 1,557 168 1,578 176 1,460 171 
			 Lincolnshire 792 85 773 74 999 112 1,057 152 1,027 149 
			 London, City of 144 18 191 30 208 22 151 18 173 11 
			 Merseyside 2,011 184 2,056 237 2,395 292 2,518 331 2,634 330 
			 Metropolitan Police 10,265 989 11,746 1,160 11,486 1,135 11,932 1,295 11,658 1,229 
			 Norfolk 1,027 116 1,067 153 1,146 128 1,086 154 1,115 150 
			 Northamptonshire 370 29 209 27 714 85 825 97 740 113 
			 Northumbria 2,295 235 2,302 286 2,424 323 2,338 337 2,263 298 
			 North Yorkshire 937 129 990 129 1,037 157 988 143 1,073 171 
			 Nottinghamshire 1,441 157 1,305 114 1,476 168 1,479 190 1,445 181 
			 South Yorkshire 1,845 176 1,756 189 1,856 233 2,010 214 2,013 207 
			 Staffordshire 1,359 154 1,489 215 1,539 194 1,508 225 1,490 228 
			 Suffolk 821 99 986 119 1,061 152 1,176 156 974 129 
			 Surrey 1,384 208 1,408 206 1,270 194 1,245 180 1,272 231 
			 Sussex 2,091 267 2,061 245 2,162 268 2,032 336 2,074 305 
			 Thames Valley 2,934 341 3,841 476 3,448 436 3,136 403 3,059 415 
			 Warwickshire 776 104 754 87 824 94 764 81 762 109 
			 West Mercia 1,574 166 1,515 204 1,600 197 1,518 171 1,773 144 
			 West Midlands 4,526 389 4,655 395 4,799 434 5,067 517 5,160 533 
			 West Yorkshire 2,936 284 3,259 304 3,397 323 3,558 339 3,513 350 
			 Wiltshire 929 116 881 124 894 137 908 116 907 131 
			 England 70,931 7,753 75,627 8,826 78,039 9,352 79,906 9,998 77,479 10,003 
			
			 Dyfed Powys 767 100 815 112 874 121 853 133 806 126 
			 Gwent 1,019 133 971 103 1,014 135 1,039 149 945 184 
			 North Wales 1,099 128 1,121 149 1,169 157 1,193 156 1,194 170 
			 South Wales 2,525 287 2,439 322 2,493 347 2,482 329 2,445 366 
			 Wales 5,410 648 5,346 686 5,550 760 5,567 767 5,390 846 
			
			 England and Wales 76,341 8,401 80,973 9,512 83,589 10,112 85,473 10,765 82,869 10,849 
			 (1) Offences of aiding, abetting, causing or permitting driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs under the Road Traffic Act 1988 s4(1), 4(2), 5(1)(a), 5(1)(b), 6(4), 7(6), 7A (as added by Police Reform Act 2002 s56); and Transport & Works Act 1992 s31A (as added by Police Reform Act 2002 s52). (2) Data covers summary offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs (which cannot reliably be distinguished).  Notes: 1. It is known that for some police force areas, the reporting of court proceedings in particular those relating to summary motoring offences, may be less than complete. 2. Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.

Departmental Consultants

David Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much his Department spent on consultants in each financial year since 2000, broken down by consultancy.

Meg Munn: I refer the hon. Member to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Hemsworth (Jon Trickett) on 6 December 2007,  Official Report, column 1427W. I also refer the hon. Member to the reply my hon. Friend the Minister for Europe (Mr. Murphy) gave to the hon. Member for Fareham (Mr. Hoban) on 9 October 2007,  Official Report, columns 542-43W.

Road Traffic

Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average delay was on England's motorways and trunk roads, expressed in minutes per 10 miles, in respect of  (a) all journeys and  (b) the slowest 10 per cent. of journeys in each year since 1997.

Tom Harris: holding answer 22 January 2008
	The average delay on England's motorways and trunk roads, expressed in minutes per 10 miles in respect of all journeys and the worst 10 per cent. of journeys in each year since 2004-05 is shown in the following table. The earliest available data is for the period August 2004 to July 2005 and the latest for November 2006 to October 2007. Data before 2004-05 is not held centrally on this basis.
	
		
			  Average delay on England's motorways and trunk roads for all journeys and worst 10 per cent. respectively, for each year since 2004-05 (minutes per 10 miles) 
			   Average delay (minutes per 10 miles) 
			   All journeys  Worst 10 per cent. 
			 August 2004 to July 2005 1.16 3.78 
			 August 2005 to July 2006 1.24 3.78 
			 August 2006 to July 2007 1.32 4.18 
			 November 2006 to October2007 1.29 4.08 
			  Source: Information derived from the Highways Agency Traffic Information Systems database 
		
	
	These figures represent average daytime delays (6 am to 8 pm) on the 91 routes currently used for monitoring performance on the strategic road network.
	Delay is the difference between observed journey time and a reference journey time (the time that could theoretically be achieved when the traffic is free flowing).

Allotments: Chorley

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of whether Chorley borough council makes adequate provision for allotments.

Iain Wright: The provision of allotments is the responsibility of local authorities. The Smallholdings and Allotments Act 1908 places a duty on local authorities to provide allotments where they perceive demand for them in their area.
	Written representations may be made to the local authority on the need for allotments by any six resident registered electors or persons liable to pay council tax, and the local authority must take those representations into account (section 23(2) of the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908). The council must assess whether there is a demand for allotments in their area. If the council then decides that there is a demand for them, they have a statutory duty to provide a sufficient number of plots. In terms of the duty to provide under section 23 of the Small Holdings and Allotments Act 1908 there is no time limit for provision once it has been established that there is a demand.
	The local government White Paper provides new opportunities for citizens to hold their local providers to account for quality of services and facilities.
	Planning Policy Guidance Note 17 (Planning for Open Space, Sport and Recreation) requires local authorities to assess the needs of their communities for a range of open spaces, and to address any identified deficiencies in provision. This is consistent with our wider policy to give local authorities flexibilities and freedoms to determine what is most appropriate for their local area.
	To further support local authorities, we are currently revising the good practice guide for the management of allotments in conjunction with the Local Government Association.

Standards Board for England

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many complaints were  (a) made to,  (b) investigated by,  (c) dismissed by and  (d) upheld by the Standards Board for England in each of the last five years; and what sanctions were imposed in each case upheld by the Board.

John Healey: The information requested, which has been provided by the Standards Board, is set out in the following table. The power to impose sanctions rests with either a local authority standards committee or the Adjudication Panel for England, following their consideration of the results of the investigations by either a local authority monitoring officer or one of the Standards Board's ethical standards officers.
	
		
			   2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-present 
			  Total complaints received 3,566 3,861 3,836 3,549 2,550 
			 Complaints referred for investigation 1,105 949 857 634 389 
			 Complaints not referred for investigation 2,144 2,756 2,842 2,591 2,224 
			 Other (for example, outside the SBE's remit) 317 273 244 164 139 
			   
			  Complaints referred for investigation  
			 Complaints referred to the Standards Board's ethical standards officers (ESO) for investigation 1,105 1,009 465 241 127 
			 Complaints referred by the ESO for local investigation by the local authority monitoring officer n/a 96 385 347 203 
			 Directions issued by ESO to the local authority monitoring officer(l) n/a n/a 7 46 58 
			   
			  Completed cases by final findings (investigated by ESO)  
			 No evidence of breach of the code of conduct 154 310 119 128 65 
			 No further action 462 947 459 182 93 
			 Referred for local determination by monitoring officer 58 78 66 12 10 
			 Referred to Adjudication Panel for England 89 111 94 9 7 
			   
			 Standards  Committee decisions and sanctions  
			 No breach of the code of conduct 2 4 3 1 0 
			 No further action 3 8 5 1 0 
			 Censured 18 26 18 7 1 
			 Suspended for up to 2 months 14 19 12 6 5 
			 Suspended for up to 3 months 2 15 19 2 3 
			   
			  Adjudication Panel decisions and sanctions  
			 No breach of the code of conduct 3 8 12 5 1 
			 Breach but no sanction imposed 3 7 24 5 0 
			 Suspended 0-6 months 13 13 5 3 2 
			 Suspended 6 months-1 year 0 6 13 0 0 
			 Disqualified for up to 6 months 3 1 5 0 3 
			 Disqualified for 6 months-1 year 19 11 15 5 1 
			 Disqualified for 18 months 4 4 1 1 1 
			 Disqualified for 2 years 12 3 7 0 0 
			 Disqualified for 3 years 10 2 1 0 0 
			 Disqualified for 4 years 2 3 2 0 0 
			 Disqualified for 4.5 years 0 0 1 0 0 
			 Disqualified for 5 years 1 1 0 0 1 
			 (1) Direction issued by an ESO to a local authority monitoring officer for action falling short of full investigation, for example conciliation or training to be undertaken by the member.